Transmission not working. advice please.

so our 02 winnie with 132k took a crap today.

Driving down the highway car lost gear. Rolled to side. Wont go into gear, no R or anything.

No trans light.
WHinning noise when i rev the engine.

Its sitting infront of the mechanic thanks to Mr Tow Truck.

any ideas?

Its never had tranny issues. transfluid has been flushed at 115k.

Well, I'll start with that first, basic question: Did you check the fluid level after the van quit? Also, has the fluid level been consistent since the last transmission flush?

fluids been fine, but last check wwas a few months ago.

did not check yesterday. i was on the side of the interstate during rush hour in chicago with two screaming babies and a motherlin law. :lol

my mind wasnt in the right place.


Mechanic called and said trans is poop. thinks its sun grear

1700 for a 124k used installed with no warrenty.

3700 for a reman with 3yr 100k warrently.

my brother in law who has a buy here pay here lot is calling his trans guy to see prices.

so the question is. at what point do i say screw this. but im pretty set on fixing for as cheap as possiblle

my brother in law who has a buy here pay here lot is calling his trans guy to see prices. but hes thinking around a grand total.

so well see.

emotionally i want to fix and sell, but i out to fix and save really.

Yeah, this is a tough decision.

Our Windstar has been good to us - and still has a lot of life left - but a big repair, like a transmission failure, would force us to consider multiple options. The Windstar has proven to have the right combination of space, usability and tow capacity (we have popup camper) for our family. I'd be hard pressed to match its capabilities for reasonable-for-a-one-paycheck-family money (i.e., new vehicles aren't an option right now).

My one comment on your situation: Unless the 124k-mile tranny has been exquisitely maintained, it's likely near the end of its useful life. That would push me toward the reman option - but $3700 is a lot of money to put into the van. Your brother-in-law's contacts can help in this area.

FWIW, my secret to long Winstar transmission life: I perform regular partial transmission fluid changes, on the order of once every 10K miles or so. I disconnect one of the cooler lines (having added an auxiliary cooler makes this fast and simple), let the transmission pump itself empty and then refill. This approach only replaces about 5 quarts of fluid - but doing it frequently is quick (I can do it in half an hour) and cheap - and has resulted in 135K trouble-free miles (including thousands of miles towing either our 2500 pound GVWR popup, or 1000-or-so pound utility trailer). Windstar transmissions are happiest with clean, fresh fluid.

the 3700 is out of the question. I bought it with 110k for 3 grand.

the 1700 is too high for no guarentee.

The bro in law is looking at having his guy rebuild mine. thats my preferred opotion. well see.

Plus my mechanic diagnosed the tranny. hes not a trans specific guy. So I may still luck out and find out its a tc or something.

Also, I dont really want to start over with a car realistically. The winnie, has a hitch, bags, cooler and relay. basically all copied off of you. :wink:

Im the same was in terms of new car. 2 kids and wife is a part time social worker. Plus im in grad school now to become a teacher. so my salary will get cut decently in less than two years.

Yeah, this is a tough decision.

Our Windstar has been good to us - and still has a lot of life left - but a big repair, like a transmission failure, would force us to consider multiple options. The Windstar has proven to have the right combination of space, usability and tow capacity (we have popup camper) for our family. I'd be hard pressed to match its capabilities for reasonable-for-a-one-paycheck-family money (i.e., new vehicles aren't an option right now).

My one comment on your situation: Unless the 124k-mile tranny has been exquisitely maintained, it's likely near the end of its useful life. That would push me toward the reman option - but $3700 is a lot of money to put into the van. Your brother-in-law's contacts can help in this area.

FWIW, my secret to long Winstar transmission life: I perform regular partial transmission fluid changes, on the order of once every 10K miles or so. I disconnect one of the cooler lines (having added an auxiliary cooler makes this fast and simple), let the transmission pump itself empty and then refill. This approach only replaces about 5 quarts of fluid - but doing it frequently is quick (I can do it in half an hour) and cheap - and has resulted in 135K trouble-free miles (including thousands of miles towing either our 2500 pound GVWR popup, or 1000-or-so pound utility trailer). Windstar transmissions are happiest with clean, fresh fluid.

Have you had the subframe and axle recalls inspections done. If not I would attempt to get them inspected before spending money to fix.

just a thought

Have you had the subframe and axle recalls inspections done. If not I would attempt to get them inspected before spending money to fix.

just a thought



i do need them done, but unfortunatly thats not really an option.


worst case they buy me out right?

worst case they buy me out right? quote

I would see if somehow you can get it inspected, Have the mechanic to where you had it towed look to see if axle is cracked or what the subframe looks like. If you dont inspect you couyld be throwing your money away. In my opinion it would be worth the effort to find out if vehicle is safe to drive before having a huge repair bill and then cannot use vehicle.

I understand the concern, but ill just have to risk it.


bro in law came through with his contact who can do reman for 1200

12 m 12k warrenty.

Alsready called the mechanic. going ther to bial her out and get the key for the guy to come pick her up.

$1200 for a rebuilt with a 1 year warranty sounds good. I had mine rebuilt @ 105k for around $1600. Have put 50k on it since then. Valid points about the rear axle and subframe inspection. I'm waiting for my rear axle, one minor corrosion hole. Haven't had the subframe inspected, just received the letter.

so our 02 winnie with 132k took a crap today.

Driving down the highway car lost gear. Rolled to side. Wont go into gear, no R or anything.

No trans light.
WHinning noise when i rev the engine.

Its sitting infront of the mechanic thanks to Mr Tow Truck.

any ideas?

Its never had tranny issues. transfluid has been flushed at 115k.


Common problems with the Windstar AX4N transmission:
-Splines on the torque converter get stripped.
-Pump shaft breaks.
-What happened to mine, I was told, the spider gear. (Although I don't think that is common)

im happy, today could have turned out much worse.

i need to get the recalls done.

just havent made the time. :disappoin

Erik -

Yeah, $1200 for a rebuild with a warranty is worth it in my book.

You're right on one point: After having spent a lot of time setting up my Windstar to do just what I need, starting over with another vehicle would be a lot of work. I'd rather fix up what already works for us.

At least the recalls are free......but they ARE VERY IMPORTANT.
The rear "axle" issue is that it rusts from the TOP......where you cannot easily see.
You look at the bottom and maybe see a small rust hole starting......but the issue is that it has rusted from the top down......so it is much worse than it looks.
It seems that water can pool in the axle......and in salt areas, rust develops.

Transmissions.....Seems around 100K miles or so things can happen.
Mine went out around 100K miles, even though I had the dealership change the fluid and filter every 30K miles.
After spending just over $2800 (in 2000 or 2001) for a FORD remanufactured unit to be installed.....I went to yearly fluid exchange (as shown in my pictures) and installed a auxillary transmission fluid cooler.
I used a high quality synthetic ATF.....Mobil 1 and then Redline D4.
A full fluid exchange will be 12.25 quarts......
After installing the Magnefine filter in the cooler line that flows INTO the transmission, I went to removing the pan and changing the filter every OTHER year........while still changing the fluid via the cooler line every year, and changing the Magnefine filter every year.
I also found that my radiator fan, low speed dropping resistor was broken.....causing me to have NO low speed operation for my radiator fans.

After changing the radiator fan dropping resistor, and verifying that the radiator fans operated as they should, I would make sure to have the A/C on (defrost position also does this) whenever I was in stop and go traffic.
THIS forced the radiator fans to STAY on at low speed, keeping the transmission fluid much cooler as that kept air flowing through the cooler.

At the time I was needing to replace my tranny, I did a LOT of reading on the internet.
There were MANY complaints about transmissions that were rebuilt, with a 12 month/12 mile waranty failing shortly after the waranty expired.
Some rebuild places replace ONLY what they have to in order to repair it......although they swear up and down that it is fully reconditioned.
THIS is the reason that I got the FORD unit, with all the updates and fully remanufactured.
I planned on keeping the vehicle and wanted something that would last.
An.....it DID last......another 10 years and over 129K miles.
The vehicle had over 229K miles on it when I sold it last spring.

FORD has some TSBs out about making SURE that the in-radiator cooler is not clogged or restricted by crud from the failed transmission.
If you don't have proper flow through the cooler, the replacement transmission.....regardless of how good it is, will overheat and fail.

So....in short.....verify that you have low speed radiator fan operation.....by turning your A/C on while the vehicle is stopped and at idle and also have the mechanic verify the flow of fluid through the transmission fluid cooler.

Ok, I just had the same problem. If it gave no notice and you have no foward or reverse it is the Torque cnverter. To test remove the upper trans fluid line and connect a hose, place end in a jug and start van. If no fluid comes out in about 30 seconds pump is not pumping. It cost me $350.00 and 13 hours of time. Also mine has 120000. miles

update


tranny is still cooking with gas after a few thousand and a few hundred towing.

passed recalls, ans tortuga verde lives still.



BUT.

in the next few summers i wanna pup some serious miles on the pup across the country.. think i might be getting a truck in a year or two

Erik -

Good news. Of course, watch the fluid carefully and plan on frequent changes to ensure a long life.

What trucks are you looking at? We're considering heavier RV towables in the future (a hybrid Roo 233S would be great for our family), which means we'd need a tow vehicle with decent capacity.

Quick story: While our Windstar was in the dealer for the rear axle and front subframe recalls, we ended up taking a (non-towing) trip with a rental 2011 F150 V8 4x4 SuperCrew. It was a very nice truck whose tow capacity would work for us - but we discovered that cab is big, but still poses challenges for a family of 5. Plus the bed (we traveled on a very wet weekend) isn't as useful as interior space. This experience likely pushes us toward an SUV approach to gaining tow capacity.